Máté Petrány

Does the world need another SUV? Probably not, but there's a significant demand no car maker can ignore. So to make the most of it, Citroën is targeting the Range Rover Posh Spice's customer base, and the DS SUV will be all about high-tech wrapped in French luxury.

Citroën's Wild Rubis Concept will debut later this month at the Shanghai Motor Show, previewing the French answer to the premium SUV. This future addition to the DS line will also feature a full plug-in hybrid drive train with four-wheel drive.

Since the new car inherited quite a few design cues from the Numéro 9 Concept we saw a year ago, it's a fair guess to say performance will be somewhere around 300 horsepower in combined mode. If they manage to keep the weight down, that should put the French SUV next to a mid-level BMW X5, as dimensions are roughly the same, although the Citroën is noticeably lower even with its 21 inch wheels.

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The Wild Rubis uses lots of chrome, LEDs and sculptured details to impress its audience. We shall see how much of the styling can make it into production, but I would bet a beer on the answer being "pretty much everything." Citroën is pretty good at that.